Only a few people can solve this math problem without the help of a calculator
We came with a brand new brain teaser that has everyone stumped. In fact, most people can’t solve this math problem without the help of a calculator! So we want to see if you are one of the smartest people in the world who can solve this by brainpower alone. Grab a piece of paper and a pencil and see if you can find the answer to the question below.
When you use your brain in challenging ways is the equivalent of giving your body a thorough workout. It’s an exercise for your mind! If you don’t keep active and give yourself little challenges here and there, you risk losing some mental agility as you get older. So, to help you keep your brain fit, we have the perfect math problem to try out!
Can you solve this one?
Remember the days when you were in school and those math classes where the teacher taught you about the importance of certain functions?
Look at the image below, and do your best. Try to find the correct answer in 1 minute. If you get the right answer, you can pretty much call yourself a genius!
At first, you may ask yourself what is so tricky about this math problem. It looks simple enough. However, that is part of the trick! The answer you may want to first give might not be the right one. Just take your time, but not longer than 1 minute.
Time is up! Are you ready to see if you got the correct answer? We have it for you below, scroll down to see how we reached it.
The solution
You have to think back to school and remember what you learned about the basic order of operations in mathematics! Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication, and Division (from left to right), Addition and Subtraction (from left to right). If we follow that rule, we would get the answer of B:12. See a detailed answer below.
So, let’s start with the multiplication of 3×3. For that answer, we get 9. Then, the next step is very easy! All you have to do is go left to right and follow the equation.
3 + 3 x 3 – 3 + 3
= 3 + 9 – 3 + 3
= 12 – 3 + 3
= 9 + 3
= 12
